Lenses have been used in various applications including, without limitation, flat-panel visual displays, solar panels, digital cameras, camera telephones, video telephones, computer input devices, scanners, machine vision systems, vehicle navigation systems, surveillance systems, auto focus systems, star trackers, motion detector systems, and image stabilization systems among other imager and display applications.
Lenses can operate in any of various ways. For example, in an imaging device, an objective lens is typically used in association with a pixel array to collect and focus incident light impinged on the objective lens onto the underlying associated pixel array. As a result, incident light can be more efficiently directed to and absorbed by the various photosensitive areas in the same pixel array, thereby improving photosensitivity of the imaging device. In a display device, a lens element can be used to diffuse incident light entering the lens element and radiate the light toward the front side of the display device for display purpose.
Lens fabrication typically involves lithography, such as e-Beam lithography, and etching, such as reactive ion etching (RIE), techniques. When they are employed to form objective lenses used in imaging devices, these techniques may be limited in their ability to create desired shapes and sizes and/or to achieve accurate profiles in the resultant patterned structures including lens templates or lens structures to be fabricated.
It is desirable to provide an improved method of fabrication and resultant structure for a lens master device, a lens structure, and an imaging device/system having a lens structure that mitigates the above problems.